Bank executive's signature on letter prompts apology (Wells Fargo and conservative fundraiser)

Anchorage Daily News ^ | December 3 2005 | PAULA DOBBYN

[freedomdefender]

Wells Fargo Bank Alaska has apologized for a letter one of its senior vice presidents signed that described the work of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as "junk science." ...[snip]

The Oct. 21 letter, co-signed by Anchorage-based Wells Fargo banker James L. Cloud, was part of a fall fundraising campaign for Pacific Legal Foundation, a national law firm that advocates for property and access rights, and less government regulation, particularly in wetlands and coastal areas.

... The nonprofit law firm also took on the Park Service when environmentalists sued to stop mining in the Kantishna district of Denali National Park and Preserve in the 1980s, said Steve Borell of the Alaska Miners Association.

Although mining ended, Pacific Legal Foundation fought vigorously, Borell said.

"They're not a bunch of fly-by-night folks. They're extremely sharp legal minds," he said.

Wells Fargo Alaska has supported the legal foundation for the past five or six years, said Junge. ...Pacific Legal Foundation's letter to "Dear PLF Alaska Friend(s)" highlighted legal fights the firm has waged and blasted federal agencies such as the Army Corps of Engineers and the Fish and Wildlife Service.

"For too long, the government has been using junk science to list non-threatened species and has ignored the requirement that a critical habitat designation consider economic impacts, while running roughshod over the rights of landowners," the letter said. ...[snip]

Alaskans have responded positively to the letter, said Pacific Legal Foundation spokeswoman Dawn Collier.

"There are a lot of Alaskans who don't view our positions as extreme," she said.

[stephenjohnbanker]

bttt

[freedomdefender]

ping

[LegendHasIt]

"....environmentalists sued to stop mining in the Kantishna district ..."

[sergeantdave]

Why apologize? US fish 'n wildlife owns more lunatics per square foot than any other illegal federal bureaucracy. Well, EPA could give 'em a run for the money.